Volcano National Park and Hilo

These are photos from Volcano National Park on my 2nd day on Hawaii, on my way to Hilo and some pictures from Hilo.

At the entrance of Volcano National Park, there is this 3D map of Hawaii. It shows the various mountians and the lavaflows which eminated from them. 

This is a steam vent in the park. You can easily see the steam rsisng from this hole in the ground. It shows that under the soil, there is still an active hotspot. 

Another steam vent nearby. 

This, and the next 3 photos, are a panorama of Kilauea, a caldera that once was very active. It is here that Mark Twain came on his trip to Hawaii. As you can see, the caldera is extensive and you can imagine how much lava it took to fill up this area. 

Photo 2 

Photo 3 

Photo 4 

This is the cooled lava which forms the floor fo the Kilauea Caldera. When I took this shot, I was about 20 m above the floor on a cliff. 

This is Mauna Loa, the home of Pele, as seen from Volcano National Park. 

This is a rift close to Kilauea. 

This is is the Volcano Observatory beside Kilauea. Inside, there is a museum dedicated to the volcanos and Hawai'ian mythology surrounding them. It is said that when a volcano erupts, it is Pele, the Volcano Goddess, who is angry at something. Inside the observatory, you can see examples of Pele's hair and tears. There is a belief that a full bottle of gin will appease Pele, but perhaps it is that which is responsible for her mood swings. 

This is a feature known as "Pele's Hair". I'm not sure of its cause, but it is volcanic in origin. It looks like real hair if you see it up close. 

These are volcanic features known as "Pele's Tears". If I am not mistaken, they are formed by lava droplets which solidify in mid-air and form these tear-shaped pebbles. 

This is Halema'uma'u, a crater inside the larger Kilauea structure. It is still somewhat active as evidenced by the steam and sulfur vents puffing away inside and around it. 

These are steam vents inside the Halema'uma'u crater. 

This is what the bottom of Halema'uma'u looks like. The flowers at the bottom right of the picture were probably placed by native Hawai'ians to propitiate Pele, Goddess of Fire. 

If you can make it out, these are sulfur vents inside Halema'uma'u. The rocks around the vents are stained yellow by the sulfur coming up from the interior of the Earth. 

This is how Halema'uma'u looks when seen from Crater Rim Drive. 

This is another one of the many calderas that dot the landscape of Volcano National Park. 

As the sea water erodes some of the lava, it can form this kind of arch. The surf here is very powerful and treacherous. 

This is a picture of some of the lavafields in the park. These are fairly new so there is very little life on them. It makes the entire area look very bleak. 

This is a hillside in the park. 

This is the leading edge of a flow of lava that covered a road in Volcano National Park. It came in the 1980s from a new lava spurting feature called Pu'u O'o, which formed just within the borders of the park. The flows from it would go on to destroy a famous beach and a town. This road once continued through the park but now ends here. You can walk across the lava to other scenic points. 

A sign encased in lava which shows how the road used to run. 

A speed limit sign surrounded by cooled lava.